Page 87 of Wanted

I chase them back down with an icy sip.

“How are you doing, Frankie?” Whitney asks, plopping to her knees beside me. She sets a tray of hostas beside her hip and rests a hand on her small round belly.

“I’ve been good.” I shade my eyes with my casted hand.

“When do you get that off?”

“Hopefully within the next couple of weeks. I’m ready to regain full function of my hand again.”

“You know, I never did hear what happened. You don’t have to tell me, but I don’t want you to think we don’t care. Jude hasn’t been forthcoming either. He just said he found you after you had an accident.”

“I can imagine not.” I shift my eyes to the side and chew on my lower lip.

If I want to have girlfriends to confide in, this might be the proper first step. Nothing too personal, but enough to be vulnerable.

Whitney bumps her shoulder with mine. “You can’t blame me for being curious. You walked into my work, wearing a dirty wedding dress, with my very withdrawn brother-in-law who looked like he was contemplating murder.”

Despite being outside, it feels as if the entire world falls quiet. The bickering women beside us even halt their friendly dispute.

I suck in a slow breath, smelling the sweetness of spring and the earthy scent of the torn garden bed. My smile is brittle as I let my shoulders fall and tell them my tale.

In the end, I wait for the flash of shame. The discomfort to rise like the tide in my stomach.

In the end, all I feel is relief.

“Oh, honey.” Cortney wraps me in a tight hug. “Fuck that Dillon guy. You don’t need a man like that.”

“You really don’t remember?” Juniper asks, her cupped hands hiding her frown.

“I don’t. I remember pieces, but the conversation is distorted. The next thing I can clearly recall is walking through the trees.”

“You are a literal Bad. Ass,” Bree breathes.

A smile teases my lips. “Thanks.”

“Makes sense,” Cortney says, digging a weed from the dirt and tossing it aside.

“What makes sense?” I ask.

“Jude. The way he was watching you. It didn’t make sense to me at first. Now it does.”

“He’s a little protective.”

“Seems to me like it’s a two-way street.” Bree winks.

“Oh gosh, leave her alone,” Whitney jumps in. “I’m thrilled Jude has someone looking after him. He’s all alone in that big house.”

“He has his dogs,” I state quietly. “I can understand why he likes it.”

“I think he prefers having you.” Cortney’s eyes are averted as she digs out a particularly deep rock.

My heart flutters at her words. The thought of Jude finding my company something other than a nuisance fills me with a sense of belonging. Somewhere along this turbulent course, we’ve shifted. I feel it. And I hope Jude feels it too.

My feelings for him have grown, but they don’t have to become complicated.

The screen door opens behind us, and Nancy pokes her head out. “I have lunch on the table if any of you girls are ready for a break.”

Girlish groans of protest fill the air as one by one the Powell women file inside. I jump up last, holding my hand out for Whitney.

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